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| "The Transfiguration" by Sanzio Raffaello, 1516-20 |
Thrones were set up
and the Ancient One took his throne.
His clothing was bright as snow,
and the hair on his head as white as wool;
his throne was flames of fire,
with wheels of burning fire.
A surging stream of fire
flowed out from where he sat;
Thousands upon thousands were ministering to him,
and myriads upon myriads attended him.
The court was convened and the books were opened.
As the visions during the night continued, I saw:
One like a Son of man coming,
on the clouds of heaven;
When he reached the Ancient One
and was presented before him,
The one like a Son of man received dominion, glory, and kingship;
all peoples, nations, and languages serve him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
that shall not be taken away,
his kingship shall not be destroyed.
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Commentary on
Dn 7:9-10, 13-14
In this vision from the book of
Daniel, we see the symbols for God the Father “the Ancient One”, seated on the
throne of Judgment (symbolized by fire) with all the faithful before him. Then
comes “One like a Son of Man”, this reference is a messianic vision. Jesus who
took that title upon himself in fulfillment of scripture (in addition to John 1:51, see also Mark 14:62, Luke 22:69 and Matthew 26:64 all of
which reference the attendance of heavenly powers.)
In the context of the Feast of
the Transfiguration, this image is consistent with that seen by the disciples
in the Gospel.
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R. (1a and 9a) The Lord is king,
the Most High over all the earth.
The Lord is king; let the earth rejoice;
let the many islands be glad.
Clouds and darkness are round about him,
justice and judgment are the foundation
of his throne.
R. The Lord is king, the Most High over all the earth.
The mountains melt like wax before the
Lord,
before the Lord of all the earth.
The heavens proclaim his justice,
and all peoples see his glory.
R. The Lord is king, the Most High over all the earth.
Because you, O Lord, are the Most High
over all the earth,
exalted far above all gods.
R. The Lord is king, the Most High over all the earth.
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Commentary on
Ps 97:1-2, 5-6, 9
This song of thanksgiving rejoices in God’s rule of the earth from
his heavenly throne. The images presented extol God’s supreme authority over
earth and heaven. The Heavenly Father is exalted above all of man’s deified
creations. The imagery is consistent with God’s special presence (“Clouds and
darkness” seen but untouchable-emanating unspeakable power). The psalmist
announces God’s justice and power over all creation.
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Beloved:
We did not follow cleverly devised myths
when we made known to you
the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,
but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty.
For he received honor and glory from God the Father
when that unique declaration came to him from the majestic glory,
“This is my Son, my beloved, with whom I am well pleased.”
We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven
while we were with him on the holy mountain.
Moreover, we possess the prophetic message that is altogether
reliable.
You will do well to be attentive to it,
as to a lamp shining in a dark place,
until day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.
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Commentary on
2 Pt 1:16-19
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Jesus
took Peter, John, and James
and
went up a mountain to pray.
While
he was praying his face changed in appearance
and
his clothing became dazzling white.
And
behold, two men were conversing with him, Moses and Elijah,
who
appeared in glory and spoke of his exodus
that
he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem
Peter
and his companions had been overcome by sleep,
but
becoming fully awake,
they
saw his glory and the two men standing with him.
As
they were about to part from him, Peter said to Jesus,
“Master,
it is good that we are here;
let
us make three tents,
one
for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
But
he did not know what he was saying.
While
he was still speaking,
a
cloud came and cast a shadow over them,
and
they became frightened when they entered the cloud.
Then
from the cloud came a voice that said,
“This
is my chosen Son; listen to him.”
After
the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone.
They
fell silent and did not at that time
tell
anyone what they had seen.
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Commentary on
Lk 9:28b-36
Jesus
has just finished speaking about his death and resurrection. The transfiguration event comes as a visible
confirmation of this prophetic discourse.
He goes up a mountain (to a high place – representative of Hebrew altars
or places of worship; frequently identified as “high places.”) with Peter James
and John. His appearance changed and the disciples observe him conversing about
“his exodus” (Jesus’ exodus would be the Passion to which he was moving) with
Moses and Elijah. The Lord again speaks of his “exodus” in Jerusalem
referring to his return to the heavenly kingdom; it is also a reference to
God’s salvation of the people of Israel
in their exodus from Egypt
The
disciples response to this vision was first to “make three tents” alluding to
the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles placing the Lord on the same plane as Moses and
Elijah. Before any response was made, a cloud came and cast a shadow over them
and God’s voice came from the cloud, announcing “This is my chosen Son, listen to him.” (Reminiscent of the words
heard at his baptism in the Jordan- Matthew 3:17; Mark 1:11; and Luke 3:22.) Jesus is elevated
above Moses and Elijah to a place with God Himself.
It
is clear from this story and the other Transfiguration accounts that the event
was kept secret until after Jesus death and resurrection. It was at that time
that the true significance of the event was understood by the Christian
community and the experience placed in its proper position chronologically.
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Reflection:
When
did Jesus (true man) completely understand that he was God? The answer to the question is unknowable but
as we seek to understand the Lord it helps some times to ask such
questions. Let us speculate for a
moment.
Since
he was true man, we could postulate that he could not have had complete
knowledge of his nature from the moment of his birth. That knowledge would have changed his
behavior. We do however hear Jesus refer
to “my father’s house” in St. Luke’s
Gospel (Luke 2:49), when
Jesus became separated from his family in Jerusalem and they found him in the
temple. It could also be argued (and
has) that Jesus the boy was simply beginning to understand that special
relationship he had with God.
It
has been said that Jesus did not completely realize he was God until his
Baptism; the first time God spoke saying “This
is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:17; Mark 1:11; and Luke 3:22). But then immediately following that event he
was driven into the desert to be tempted by the devil. This was clearly a test (for our
benefit?). Could he have known with
absolute certainty that he was God at that point; allowing the devil to tempt
him?
We
next to the feast we celebrate today; the Transfiguration. We hear how Jesus, having gone up to a “high
place” (a clear reference to sacred ground, a sanctified place dedicated to
God) to pray – to speak with God. In
doing so his nature is revealed to the disciples as his glorified nature
overcomes his physical form and his appearance is changed. With him, the disciples observe Moses, giver
of the Law, and Elijah, prince of prophets.
It was these two elements of faith, the Law and the Prophets that Jesus
came to fulfill. Did the Lord fully
understand his nature at that moment?
When
God came in the form of a cloud and said “This is my chosen Son; listen to him”
did Jesus hear and understand that the word “Son” was spoken with a capital “S”
not in the lower case as we understand our relationship to him? If he did then why did he allow the events
that followed? He took this event with
him, even into the Garden where he begged the Father to take the cup from
him. Could he have known completely as
his tears fell like blood?
Certainly
Jesus knew his true nature at the resurrection.
He returned with complete knowledge, knowing that he had come from God
and returned to Him in fulfillment of all that was written in the Law and the
Prophets. As true man, he suffered and
he suffered not just the physical pain of life and the Passion, he suffered too
the emotional and psychological pain of know knowing what would come of his
mission and his life on earth.
While
such woolgathering may not provide answers for us, today we rejoice in our sure
and complete faith that Jesus is Lord and Savior and it is to him we owe our
thanks and prayers.
Pax
In
other years: Tuesday
of the 18th Week in Ordinary Time
[2]
The painting today is The Transfiguration, by Sanzio Raffaello, 1516-20
[3]
The readings are taken from the New American Bible with the exception of the
Psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for
English in Liturgy (ICEL). This re-publication
is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
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